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This. Any Mac with 256GB of storage and 8GB of unified RAM is something I steer family and friends away from. Because of my business needs as a videographer, none of these computers are any good to me, either - I went with 64GB of RAM and a 4TB drive with my latest MacBook Pro, which I wouldn't have done pre-M1, but the impossibility of upgrading drives and memory on Macs pushes pro users into a whole different class of computer costs. Apple needs to be careful with their pricing, especially with all this talk of recessions.
100% this. 8Gb RAM and 256GB storage is just a joke, full stop. That load-out is worth maybe $500 in my eyes and only useful for someone who just needs to pay bills online and do email. The baseline should be 16GB RAM, and 1TB now for everything.
 
Trouble, as so often.. is when you start configuring what you probably need, the prices do sky-rocket:
  • 16 GB RAM
  • 8 core GPU
  • 1 TB SSD (512 GB is very minimal…)
I own a 24“ iMac M1 maxxed out (so with 2 TB SSD).
In my living room I love the all-in-one design, but coming from a 2017 27” iMac i7 with 32 GB RAM and Radeon 580 Pro, it is not a step forward. The CPU is quicker and it’s more quiet. That’s it.
 
I've never experienced any performance issues with my M1 base model iMac and I use it on a daily basis for various activities, including some video editing and even gaming. And owing a single fan model, I haven't noticed any significant heating issues as well. And while 256 GB is not huge amount of space one can always use an external SSD storage since I have couple of them in my house. Paying extra for Apple storage which is ridiculously overpriced is a waste of money imo.
 
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I’m new here, just had to chime in. Hilarious to read through all the naysayer comments on the 2021 iMac.

Please, if you will, humor us all and put together a package for $1,200 that meets or beats this unit’s 8 core CPU / GPU Passmark scores, SSD read/write speeds, 4.5k 100% P3 color space monitor at 218 ppi and 500 nits, WiFi speed of 760 MBit/s, two (2) Thunderbolt 3’s at 40Gbps, two (2) USB 3.1 Gen 2’s at 10Gbps, a 1080P webcam and microphones of this quality, and a six (6) speaker sound system that is equally as superb.

Also, don’t forget the cost of a keyboard with fingerprint login and a mouse capable of multi touch input.

We will all be waiting for the cost of the i7 system or better it will take to beat this iMac at $1,200. You can try, but if you can’t put the system together right here right now, well, then you simply live in a world where measurable objective criteria are meaningless.

Waiting endlessly for a link to something even marginally better in all of these metrics at $1,200 or less.

Oh, and don’t worry, there will be no requirement that it be less than 10lbs or 1/2 inch thick like the iMac.

Good luck!
 
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I never understood the appeal of an iMac. Why pay for a new display when you buy a new computer? I have an LG 43UD79 that I've been using since 2018 and I still plan on using it for the next few years. I wouldn't be able to do this with an iMac.
Well, you used to be able to use your old iMac as an external display when it got too old and slow to be useful. And,for a time, iMacs were the most powerful macs money could buy. On either side of that, they were only beat by the top of the line Mac pros that cost 5x as much. And they used to be fully serviceable, so you wouldn’t need to trash your whole machine when the SSD inevitably wears out after a thousand writes.

Your criticisms certainly apply to the new ones though.
 
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I’m new here, just had to chime in. Hilarious to read through all the naysayer comments on the 2021 iMac.

Please, if you will, humor us all and put together a package for $1,200 that meets or beats this unit’s 8 core CPU / GPU Passmark scores, SSD read/write speeds, 4.5k 100% P3 color space monitor at 218 ppi and 500 nits, WiFi speed of 760 MBit/s, two (2) Thunderbolt 3’s at 40Gbps, two (2) USB 3.1 Gen 2’s at 10Gbps, a 1080P webcam and microphones of this quality, and a six (6) speaker sound system that is equally as superb.

Also, don’t forget the cost of a keyboard with fingerprint login and a mouse capable of multi touch input.

We will all be waiting for the cost of the i7 system or better it will take to beat this iMac at $1,200. You can try, but if you can’t put the system together right here right now, well, then you simply live in a world where measurable objective criteria are meaningless.

Waiting endlessly for a link to something even marginally better in all of these metrics at $1,200 or less.

Oh, and don’t worry, there will be no requirement that it be less than 10lbs or 1/2 inch thick like the iMac.

Good luck!
Well said
iMac is not for me, but most of the comments here a bordering on pathetic!
 
Clearing out M1 iMac inventory as Apple will release an updated (M2? M3?) iMac not too far from now (WWDC?)... just in time for Back-to-School

M3 MacBook Airs (13" and 15") and M3 iMac at WWDC would be nice. 🤞
Just like the MacBook 15” there won’t be no M3 iMac at wwdc it would be a M2 chip if they updated them
 
This. Any Mac with 256GB of storage and 8GB of unified RAM is something I steer family and friends away from. Because of my business needs as a videographer, none of these computers are any good to me, either - I went with 64GB of RAM and a 4TB drive with my latest MacBook Pro, which I wouldn't have done pre-M1, but the impossibility of upgrading drives and memory on Macs pushes pro users into a whole different class of computer costs. Apple needs to be careful with their pricing, especially with all this talk of recessions.
I really do get that this is not a product for everyone, but I still find it weird to not recommend it to someone if you base it on your professional needs as a videographer. I am too what one would consider a "power user", but I would have no problem recommending a low end iMac to my mom, who has widely different needs for a computer than I do.
 
I love the M1 iMac. Coming from a 2015 MBP as my daily driver, the change in speed was incredible. It’s more than powerful enough for my needs - organizing my music library and light audio/video editing. It’s a tad pricey compared to competitors, but it’s a premium product with quality materials, and overall well worth the price, even before sales.
well a 2015 MBP using mechanical HD is very sluggish compared to almost anything newer..I'm sure you'd have seen dramatic speed increase if you could just swap it's mechanical HD with a SSD.

I have a 2015 iMac,it was very slow.I upgraded it's HD to SSD and it literally felt like a brand new machine.
last year I bought a M1 MacBook Air,it's fine but I was excpecting faster,better performance based on all the hype.
the 2015 Intel iMac with SSD is definitely still very usable and not feeling totally underpowered when compared to this M1 MBA.
 
I just purchased a maxed out 2013 iMac. Upgraded the SSD and the RAM. Everything came out to less than $60 and it works great.

These frequent comparisons you see here on MacRumors are really just us nerds Cherry picking out the little details.

The truth is even a 10 year old Apple iMac can still get the job done and do it well.

Sure if I need to edit videos I’d rather do it on my newer MacBook Pro but I would much rather own slightly older Apple products instead of owning just one new one that’ll age at some point.

Apple Tax is a real thing and having been an Apple fan for decades, I now know how to avoid paying it.

Last thing I’ll mention; I’d gladly buy this for my mom or sister or whoever. Even I’d own it. But why pay $1200 for an iMac today when I can find a phenomenal 27 inch retina screen iMac for $400 on eBay that’s just two or three years old
 
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well a 2015 MBP using mechanical HD is very sluggish compared to almost anything newer..I'm sure you'd have seen dramatic speed increase if you could just swap it's mechanical HD with a SSD.

I have a 2015 iMac,it was very slow.I upgraded it's HD to SSD and it literally felt like a brand new machine.
last year I bought a M1 MacBook Air,it's fine but I was excpecting faster,better performance based on all the hype.
the 2015 Intel iMac with SSD is definitely still very usable and not feeling totally underpowered when compared to this M1 MBA.
Except that Apple Marketing arbitrarily dropped your 2015 iMac from any future software support to try to force you into eventually buying a new one... or leave the platform and move on to a less ungrateful ecosystem.
 
Costco has the same price. 90 day return policy. 24 month warranty included. If you use Costco Visa card, you get 24 more months of warranty.

Thanks for pointing this out! I've been switching between 24" and 27" screens at work and home. I really prefer 27", so I can hold out, but the iMac screen is gorgeous and the AIO package is very appealing. This is a good deal on what amounts to a still-amazing computer, even in 2023.

If you're anxious about what might be released at WWDC you can buy at Costco and return after the event without a problem.
 
Prices are way to high on all Apple Silicon computers. I want an iMac, but it needs to be at the right price, and not with 256 memory; that's outdated the day you buy it.
It’s ridiculous. You have to pay $200 just to go from 8 GB to 16 GB of memory which to me is the minimum amount of memory you should have now a days. By the time you spend the extra money to get the SSD and the memory to where Apple should be making them at a minimum you are up to $2000. Ridiculous!
 
What do you think Amazon is paying for these wholesale from Apple? this is 20% off. Is amazon breaking even? Do they get special deals? like does apple use amazon to sell off overstock? My closest apple reseller (non Apple Store or Best Buy) is computer advantage in sarasota and they don't discount new models and I've bought my last 2 Mac pro's from them and an acquaintance used to own a local small Apple Store here in town before we got an Apple Store within an hour of here.
 
Except that Apple Marketing arbitrarily dropped your 2015 iMac from any future software support to try to force you into eventually buying a new one... or leave the platform and move on to a less ungrateful ecosystem.
less "ungrateful ecosystem"? such as?
I have windows PC as well always had both.Mac still has way better longevity.simple as that.I'm criticising one Apple product within Apple ecosystem.
 
less "ungrateful ecosystem"? such as?
I have windows PC as well always had both.Mac still has way better longevity.simple as that.I'm criticising one Apple product within Apple ecosystem.
We have windows XP devices used to run and operate out entire postal service, FEDEX, UPS backbend is XP. 9/10 manufacturing plants are running on XP or 7. Mac os x and os9 are so obsolete they are relegated to enthusiasts for the most niche uses. A Mac has a 4-6 year shelf life. And takes significant legacy support from software developers to keep them functioning online.
We JUST lost windows 7 and 8 with the computers running those OS still completely viable with updates. Apple has planned obsolescence baked in from day one. With devices that SHOULD be completely viable being put on obsolete lists ever cycle. The Macs are usually built better. But legacy support is no existent. Yet my old college laptop from 2005 can still run a modern OS and get online.
 
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